Minimum wage rates
Minimum wage from April 2027: what changes for you
Enter your age, apprenticeship and usual weekly hours: the tool compares your legal minimum today with the rate from 1 April 2027.
Your rise on 1 April 2027
More per week from 1 April 2027
£15
| Today | £12.71 an hour |
| From 1 April 2027 | £13.21 an hour |
| Rise | 3.9% |
| More per year | £780 |
Same age and apprenticeship on both dates. A birthday before April moves you into the next band sooner.
From 1 April 2027 the minimum wage rises to £13.21 an hour for workers aged 21 and over, £11.27 for 18 to 20 year olds, and £8.31 for 16 and 17 year olds and for apprentices under 19 or in their first year. The government announced these figures on 28 October 2026, the day of the Autumn Budget, after accepting in full the Low Pay Commission's advice submitted on 23 October 2026. Every band rises by 3.9%: £0.50 an hour at 21 and over, £0.42 at 18 to 20 and £0.31 for the youngest workers and apprentices. The accommodation offset goes from £11.10 to £11.53 a day. For a full-time worker on 37.5 hours a week at the National Living Wage, the rise is worth £18.75 a week before tax. The figures still have to be written into amending regulations, which the government makes each year before 1 April.
Minimum wage per week, month and year
Legal minimum per hour
£13.21
| Rate that applies | National Living Wage (21 and over) |
| Per week | £495.38 |
| Per month | £2,146.63 |
| Per year (52 weeks) | £25,759.50 |
April 2027 rates announced by the government on 28 October 2026.
Rates and rules read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
The April 2027 rates beside today's
| Band | Today (from April 2026) | From 1 April 2027 | Per hour | Per 37.5-hour week |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 and over | £12.71 | £13.21 | +£0.50 | +£18.75 |
| 18 to 20 | £10.85 | £11.27 | +£0.42 | +£15.75 |
| 16 to 17 | £8.00 | £8.31 | +£0.31 | +£11.63 |
| Apprentice | £8.00 | £8.31 | +£0.31 | +£11.63 |
For the first time in several years, all four bands rise by the same percentage. Between 2022 and 2026 the 18 to 20 rate had grown much faster than the adult rate, from £6.83 to £10.85, a rise of 59%, to prepare for a single adult rate from 18. The Commission decided to pause that alignment in 2027, saying demand for young workers had slowed and that youth unemployment was at rates last seen in 2015.
What the rise is worth over a year
A worker aged 21 or over on 37.5 hours a week earns £24,784.50 a year at today's rate and £25,759.50 at the April 2027 rate, before tax. On 20 hours a week the yearly gain is £520. Because the personal allowance and the National Insurance thresholds stay frozen for 2027 to 2028, part of the rise goes in tax and National Insurance once your pay is above them.
Take-home pay at the minimum wage
Take-home per month
£1,838.87
| Gross per year | £25,759.50 |
| Income Tax | £2,637.90 |
| National Insurance | £1,055.16 |
| Take-home per week | £424.35 |
Tax year 2027 to 2028, tax code 1257L, no pension, student loan or other income.
The second tool above, under the summary, turns the 2027 rate for any age into weekly, monthly and yearly pay; the take-home pay page explains the tax side.
When the new rate starts on your payslip
The new rates apply to pay reference periods that begin on or after 1 April 2027, which is a Thursday. A weekly paid worker whose week runs Monday to Sunday gets the new rate from Monday 5 April 2027; the days from 1 to 4 April still belong to a week that began in March. A monthly paid worker whose month starts on the 1st gets it for all of April. The pay reference period page explains how the period is set.
A birthday in the same weeks adds a second step. Someone who turns 18 on 10 April 2027 moves first to the new 16 to 17 rate, then to the new 18 to 20 rate from the first pay period that starts on or after the birthday. The birthday checker gives the exact date.
Why these figures
The government's remit asks the Low Pay Commission to aim for a National Living Wage equal to two thirds of median hourly earnings. In the spring of 2026 the Commission estimated that £13.18 would reach it, within a range of £13.02 to £13.34. Wages then grew faster than expected and the estimate rose to £13.44, or 5.7% more. The Commission recommended less, £13.21, citing weak hiring, employers' rising costs and the risk to jobs, while keeping the rate above forecast inflation for April 2027 to March 2028. The Low Pay Commission page explains how the yearly cycle works.
What does not change in April 2027
- The age bands: the National Living Wage still starts at 21, and the apprentice rule (under 19, or 19 and over in the first year) is the same.
- The way pay is checked: premiums and tips left out, deductions for the employer's purposes taken off, the accommodation offset at its new value.
- The enforcement rules: arrears at the current rate, penalties of 200% of the arrears and complaints through the official form.
The aim of a single adult rate from 18 stays in the remit but has no date: the page on lowering the age follows it.